1997 NEWS

December 1997

28/12 - For those of you who remember the DD team of Ron
Wagner and
Bill Reinhold,
you may want to check out
_Rogues_ from the New Year's Evil books by DC.

28/12 - With Scott Lobdell (apparently) taking over DD for
a few
issues after Joe Kelly leaves, you may want to check out Journey Into
Mystery #517-519, a Black Widow arc, written by Lobdell.

28/12 - Make sure to pick up Shadows and Light #1, with a
DD story and
a Black Widow story.

20/12 - Check out Iron Man #1 for an appearance by Foggy
and 'Razor'
Sharpe.

14/12 - Cully Hamner of Gaijin Studios has confirmed with
me that he is the
penciler of Scott Lobdell's arc (#376-379). Jason Martin is inking.

11/12 - Scott Lobdell is doing a story arc after Joe Kelly
leaves the
comic. After Lobdell, the writer of DD is still unknown...

08/12 - Warren Ellis has been confirmed to be the writer of
the next DD
novel, out in 1999 by Byron Preiss Multimedia.

02/12 - Tomorrow DD#372 is out, along with the delayed
Kingpin #1

01/12 - A new DD T-Shirt is available in this month's
PREVIEWS. Check it
out!

November 1997

27/11 - In the new Shadows and Light series, there may be a
new DD
comic-strip by Stan Lee and John Romita in the works.

27/11 - Guess who's back on Daredevil? Ann Nocenti returns
in February 1998
with the Ka-Zar/Daredevil '98 Annual.

26/11 - Check out _Earth-X_, the free comic by Alex Ross in
Wizard #77. It
has a pin-up of a future version of Daredevil.

26/11 - Issue #375, Joe Kelly's last issue, will take place
over a week's
time, and each chapter will be drawn by a different artist.

25/11 - Newcomer Rich Acosta is doing the art chores for
issue
#373.

18/11 - On the RACMU newsgroup, Marvel Editor Tom Brevoort
had this to say
about the rumours concerning DD:

I've been running damage control on this thing for two days now. Enough's
enough.

While there's a nugget of truth poking out here and there in the original post,
98% of this stuff is pure fabrication, guesswork, and rumor-mongering.

Never, never, never trust anybody who won't give out their sources.

Tom Brevoort

16/11 - The Black Widow is the star of an upcoming arc in
Journey To
Mystery

16/11 - There are rumours circulating now that DD will be
canceled at
issue 375. The rumoured deal with Event may fall through due to the
financial situation at Marvel. Will DD start all over at #1 if/when Event
takes control of the comic? Stay tuned...

16/11 - Another comic rumoured to be on the chopping block
is Elektra.
It may be canceled at #17.

10/11 - This is what NEWSARAMA is reporting about the EVENT
Comics situation
and Joe Kelly's departure from the comic...

Newsarama Daily
by Michael Doran

Things got mighty interesting in Hell's Kitchen over the
weekend.. Here's two
different stories involving EVENT COMICS, and JOE KELLY,
respectively,
that just may have a common thread without fear..

"EVENT"FUL DAYS

Those guys at EVENT Comics, JOE QUESADA & JIMMY PALMIOTTI
certainly are making news lately. Last week, Newsarama was
first to report on
possible negotiations between Event and MARVEL Comics
involving their
respective characters. And earlier this week, other news
sources pitched in to
add more fuel to the fire, reporting that the deal
possibly being discussed was a
HEROES REBORN-type scenario that could see Event "produce
& package"
titles featuring Marvel characters.
The rumors have it these titles would REMAIN in mainstream
Marvel
continuity and be done in close association with Marvel
editorial proper. And
while DAREDEVIL has been named as one of the possible
titles involved (with
filmmaker KEVIN SMITH attached as writer), so far EVENT
(or Marvel) has
not officially endorsed these rumors. But that didn't stop
Quesada and Palmiotti
from making a curious announcement Friday afternoon.
According to their press release, EVENT will temporarily
SUSPEND
operations for 6 months in order to re-organize its
internal operations and
EXPAND its current monthly publishing schedule. The
temporary suspension
will go into effect following the publication of ASH:
CINDER AND SMOKE
#6 (the miniseries' conclusion), and PAINKILLER JANE #5,
both of which
will ship late this month. And they are very excited about
the news...
"We couldn't be more thrilled about this opportunity to
grow and expand," said
Palmiotti. "When fans and retailers find out what we've
got coming up in the
next year, they'll be as excited as we are!"
"When publishers have suspended operations in recent
years, it was an
indication that the company was in trouble or going
under," said publisher and
co-owner Laurie Bradach. "In our case, that couldn't be
further from the truth.
Event is fully solvent and, for a small publisher in
today's market, very
successful."
"Believe me, Event is definitely resuming publication in 6
months...I personally
guarantee it!" said Quesada. "We've got some incredibly
exciting things coming
up, and we'll be kicking off our new publishing schedule
early next year with
the new monthly ASH series, scripted by JAMES ROBINSON!"
How this development effects, and/or what relation it has
to the possible
Marvel deal, remains to be seen.

AND THEN KELLY MAKES HIS NEWS

In a Saturday statement to fans and comics news outlets,
writer JOE KELLY
addressed rumors of the Event/Daredevil connection, and
the made a surprising
announcement of his own.
"To start, I don't know if EVENT thing is true as far as
whether or not KEVIN
SMITH is really going to take over DD. There has been talk
about QUESADA
doing the repackaging thing and bringing him in, but
nothing is official yet,"
wrote Kelly. "However, it is official that I'll be LEAVING
DAREDEVIL after
issue #375."
Kelly continued, "There are a few reasons why I'm leaving
the book, but at the
top of it all...I'M OVERWORKED! Taking on X-MEN, fleshing
out year 2 of
DEADPOOL, and working on Hornhead was really starting to
take its toll on
me. I began to fall behind on my workload, and felt that
my overall quality (on
DD especially) was beginning to suffer. So I decided that
instead of trying to
bulldoze my way through to the end of a full year-run just
for the sake of it
being a year, I'd take a step back now before I did any
damage to the three
books I love. Better to do good work on 2 books than
mediocre work on 3."
"I love Daredevil, so this was not an easy decision for me
to make. The run has
been good fun so far, and I have plans for DD that still
get me excited, but I
had to move on. I've had a blast working on this
character, and hope that
someday I'll have the opportunity to run the rooftops with
Matt again."

This currently leaves the title without a regular writer
or penciler. When plans
for the future of DAREDEVIL and /or EVENT are revealed
(whatever they
may be), Newsarama will try to bring them to you.

07/11 - It's official ladies and gentlemen. Joe Kelly is
leaving the book.
His last issue will be #375. That 'Event Comics' rumour may be coming
true... I'll keep you posted.

05/11 - Look for Ghost Rider in the next issue of DD372.
GR's book is being
canceled at #94.

05/11 - X-Man (Nate Grey) also makes a cameo in DD371 along
with Cecelia
Reyes. Check out Uncanny X-Men #351 this month for a DD appearance.

03/11 - This Wednesday, check out the new DD issue, as well
as the
new Moon Knight limited series by Tommy Lee Edwards and JLA:Paradise
Lost #1 by Ariel Olivetti

October 1997

23/10 - Elektra #13 is now out, with the conclusion to the American
Samurai
storyline

18/10 - Look for a new Blade one-shot in January with art by none
other than Gene Colan and written by Christopher Golden

17/10 - Gene Colan has indeed left the book (I'm still waiting on
OFFICIAL word from Marvel before I can post why...) and the next few issues
will
be
by Ariel Olivetti until a replacement is found. The leading candidate right
now
is Tommy Lee Edwards (see below).

12/10 - Following up on the Tommy Lee Edwards
rumour...
Mr. Edwards has contacted me and has confirmed that he has been offered the
book
and is currently in negotiations with Marvel. More details to come...

08/10 - X-Man Cecelia Reyes has a cameo next issue (#371)

08/10 - DD 370 came out today, along with Amazing Spider-Man 429,
which guest-stars DD

05/10 - Check out Comic Book Marketplace #54 in November, where there
will be an article on DD concentrating on the works of Lee to Miller.

01/10 - There are rumours circulating that Tommy Lee Edwards has been
offered the penciling job on DD... more news on this when I find out if
it's true or not...

01/10 - DD #370 has been delayed... it didn't come out
this week.

01/10 - Matt makes a cameo in Ka-Zar #8 as the Plunder's lawyer.

September 1997

24/09 - Ex-DD artist Cary Nord is the artist on the next Star
Trek/X-Men project

24/09 - Wizard #75 has a lengthy interview with Joe Kelly, and news on
the DD movie

05/09 - Watch for my interview with Steve Gerber, coming soon...

03/09 - Due to Labour Day, the new DD issue will arrive in stores on
Thursday.

02/09 - There will be another DD novel from Byron Preiss (same folks
who did Predator's Smile) coming in 1999. It will not be a sequel. No word
on who is writing it.

August 1997

25/08 - Daredevil Movie News! According to various sources, the
'planned' DD movie will be produced by Chris Columbus (Mrs. Doubtfire),
directed by Carlo Carlei (Fluke), and written by ex-DD scribe
J.M.DeMatteis. Of course, this is all 'rumour'... who knows if this will
ever be made.

22/08 - Check out
Thunderbolts #8 where DD and many other Marvel Heroes make cameos.

17/08 - Anyone going to the Comic Convention next weekend in Toronto?
I'll be the guy buying all the DD stuff. Hope to see you guys there.

17/08 - Watch for the return of the Kingpin in Kingpin #1, by Stan Lee
and John Romita, Sr., in November.

13/08 - With the continuing UPS strike, some stores may not receive
the already late DD#368 today. Most stores (in the States) should
receive their comics tomorrow.

06/08 - This month's Marvel Vision has an interview with Joe Kelly,
and a profile of two former DD writers - Steve Englehart and Steve
Gerber

06/08 - You may want to get the Comics Journal this month. There is a
profile of great DD artist Wally Wood.

05/08 - The interview I had with Joe Kelly is now in the INTERVIEWS
section.

June 1997

26/06 - Be sure to take a look for Thunderbolts '97, which has 5
pages drawn by Gene Colan, and DD makes an appearance.

26/06 - In Sept., DD#369 will be drawn by Ariel Olivetti. Olivetti
will be the artist for the upcoming Satana series from Marvel.

20/06 - Check out this week's comics for a profile of editor Jaye
Gardner

09/06 - There's a rumour going around that Joe Kelly will be writing
the X-Men as of issue #70. Will he stay on Daredevil and Deadpool?

09/06 - Due to a computer problem at Diamond Distributors, most comics
will arrive on Thursday, not Wednesday. DD#366 'should' come out that
day.

04/06 - Daredevil #366
didn't come out this week as expected.

May 1997

31/05 - Now that Flashback month is 'over', we return to DD #366 next
week, and the continuation of the Mr. Fear storyline. The new Gladiator
is introduced. The story apparently will be taking place in a prison, and
DD is caught in the middle of a riot.

31/05 - Some stuff I've heard... Black Widow will be appearing soon
with the Soviet Super Soldiers, and watch for Omega Red to drop on by too.

31/05 - DD will be guest-starring in Elektra #11 and #12

21/05 - There has been some debate as to whether Bullseye really
knows Matt is Daredevil. Does he? The debate is about the
'Roulette' issue by Miller. Is DD talking to Bullseye, or only
thinking the story to himself? Your thoughts on this are???

21/05 - I've posted the interview I had with Tony Isabella in the new
Interviews section. I have also moved Reviews into its own section too.

04/05 - DD fans may want to check out Elektra #-1, where she first
meets Stick. The DD #-1 issue will feature Matt and his father.

04/05 - Check out Marvel Vision #19, which has an interview with Gene
Colan.

04/05 - Daredevil #367 will lead directly into the summer DD/Deadpool
'97 issue. This story will tie-in with the Elektra series as well.

04/05 - Deadpool #6 has some more sketches by Bernard Chang for the
DD/Deadpool '97 annual.

04/05 - Deadpool #6 also has the return of Typhoid Mary, who will
play a big part in the crossover with Daredevil.

April 1997

21/04 - Karl Kesel has 'confirmed' that he will be writing the next
Access limited series for Marvel and DC. Kesel had been rumoured to be
interested in writing Fantastic Four as part of the Heroes Return.
Didn't Kesel leave Daredevil because he had too much work? Makes you
wonder what really made him leave the comic.

21/04 - Comicraft has been hired by Marvel to revamp the look of all
Marvel titles in June. This will include new logos, letters pages, and
the Bullpen Bulletins. Stan Lee has returned to do his 'Soapbox' too.

21/04 - Most readers, from what they are telling me, are pleased with
Joe Kelly's writing and are recommending Deadpool as a series to pick up.
Speaking of Deadpool...

20/04 - The DD/Deadpool '97 issue will be drawn by Bernard Chang.
Sketches by Chang appear in Deadpool #4. Readers may know Chang from his
work with Valiant/Acclaim.

17/04 - The Comics Journal has an
in-depth interview with David Mazzucchelli. Mazzucchelli talks about his
early years and why he left comics to start a music career. He also
discusses his return to comics and his independent series 'Rubber
Blanket'. Pick it up if you are a fan of his 'Born Again' work.

11/04 - That rumoured 'new look' for Marvel is going to increase the
price of Marvel Comics to $1.99 U.S.. Apparently, all titles will now
have a couple of pages of plot summaries for readers to know what is
going on....

10/04 - Venom:On Trial #3 finally came out.

06/04 - This week #365 comes out, with the conclusion to the Mr. Fear
storyline. This is also Cary Nord's final issue.

06/04 - The new Gladiator arrives in issue #366 (June).

06/04 - Cary Nord pencils Silver Surfer #130 in June. Is he the new
penciler? Hmmmm....

06/04 - Venom:On Trial #3 has been delayed since Mar. 23. If you
don't know, Matt Murdock/Daredevil appears in this series.

Also, if you have doubts about Chris Columbus
based on his directing past, he has just
co-written a script called Daredevil, which yes it is that guy who
knows no fear, that is even
better than the FF script. This one includes Elektra, Kingpin,
Bullseye, Foggy Nelson, and
battling Jack Murdock! This one doesn't wink once at the screen, and
carries a sai through the
throat. Kiddies stay at home, as this one will shock your auditory
senses in a digital THX
auditorium. And you get that just from the script. Chris has been in
John Hughes' shadow for
way too long, and will break out onto the scene with amazing
poignancy with these two
projects, that if get filmed with these scripts will shock the nation
with coolness seeping from
every marvel-ous page. SPAWN will be a primer for these films, the
gauntlet they will pick up.
Nuff Said.

09/03 - Daredevil #364, the
conclusion to the Insomnia story, is now out. This is also the last issue by
Karl
Kesel as he leaves to concentrate on his Superman titles. Joe Kelly takes
over with #365 and Gene Colan takes over as penciller with #366. Where does
this
leave Cary Nord and Matt Ryan? Who's inking Colan? Who's the editor? I'll
let you know as soon I can get some answers from my sources.

09/03 - Check out Venom:On Trial (#1 and #2 are out) where Matt
Murdock defends Eddie Brock in court. Other guest-stars include Carnage
and Spider-Man. This limited series is by Larry Hama, Josh Hood and Derek
Fisher ($1.95/$2.75).

09/03 - [SPOILER] - Don't read this if you haven't read #364 yet...
this is your warning... Was anyone else surprised that the Kingpin wasn't
involved with WFSK? And now that Mr. Fear knows that Matt is DD (well,
who doesn't know? :) ), what does Joe Kelly have planned with this
development?

02/03 - In June, Marvel is planning a 'Flashback' month, with most of
the titles having a '-1' issue. The stories will deal with events that
occurred before the Fantastic Four formed, and before Peter Parker was
bitten by a radioactive spider. The Daredevil issue will be done by Joe
Kelly and Gene Colan, and focus on 'Battlin' Jack Murdock's life with his
son Matt. Should be interesting. From Marvel Vision - In this previously
untold tale, "Battlin'" Jack
Murdock hangs up the boxing gloves to take his blind son Matt to the ivy
covered walls of
academia.

02/03 - For those of you who don't know, in Deadpool #2, it is
mentioned that Daredevil and Deadpool will team up for an issue in the
Summer.

02/03 - A couple of years back, D.G.Chichester made some interactive
demos for both Daredevil:Fall From Grace and Elektra:Root of Evil. If you
missed them, I
recently got copies of them from Mr. Chichester. Both of these demos are
on AOL, but if you want to view these demos, let me know and I'll get
back to you on how to get a hold of them. Keep in mind, both demos can
only run on a MAC.

02/03 - If you haven't checked it out, I've posted the final survey
results from last year. Check out the SURVEY section. And if you don't
mind, fill out the new survey on the same page. Thanks to everyone who
voted!
Older news...

Check out last month's Wizard #67 (with a variant DD cover) which has
all the info you need to know about WHY Kesel left the comic

If you don't have access to Wizard, basically Kesel has cited that
his workload was heavy and he had to drop DD.

James Felder has left for 'personal' reasons.

Also in that issue are a profile on DD and an interview with Gene Colan

Marvel Vision #16 has an interview with Cary Nord

As of
DD#362, the price has gone back up to $1.95US/$2.75CAN

Look for Overstreet's Fan #20 with DD and Shi on the cover. It also
has an interview with Bill Tucci

Check out Wizard #65 for an in depth
interview with Karl Kesel and look at what could have been...

Anyone have the Spider-Man cartoons where DD appears? If you have
them taped, get in touch with Brandon Berthelot (berthelo@sprynet.com).
He is putting together a Daredevil desktop theme and he needs some sample
sounds from those DD episodes...

There's a rumour going around that DD will be farmed out to Top Cow
so Marc Silvestri can oversee it...however, Marvel denies this, so don't
take it seriously...

Is anyone else disappointed that DD only appeared for a few panels in
All Access?

Check out Wizard #61 for a profile on DD, and also a little preview of the
Elektra series.